kevin_lindsay Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 I was discussing my double bass 'bash it up' woes with some of the folks at my work. Someone asked 'why is it called a DOUBLE bass?'. I was stumped for an answer. Can anyone enlighten me as to why it's called this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Because it doubles the cellos in an orchestra an octave down. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin_lindsay Posted March 1, 2011 Author Share Posted March 1, 2011 Ah, I see! My workmates were coming up with gens such as "is there a SINGLE bass then?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keeponehandloose Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Because its twice as much fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cat Burrito Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 and you have twice the chances of doing yourself a mischief lugging it around! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fatback Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 (edited) And everything costs twice as much... Er no. Make that four times as much. Edited March 1, 2011 by fatback Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blademan_98 Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 [quote name='Bilbo' post='1146226' date='Mar 1 2011, 06:48 PM']Because it doubles the cellos in an orchestra an octave down.[/quote] Does that mean an electric bass is more akin to a cello? (Serious question) Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassBus Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 Double the chance of [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=103314"]pulling[/url]. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shonks Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 [quote name='Blademan_98' post='1146352' date='Mar 1 2011, 08:21 PM']Does that mean an electric bass is more akin to a cello? (Serious question) Cheers.[/quote] nope!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jakenewmanbass Posted March 1, 2011 Share Posted March 1, 2011 I like to refer to it as Bass x 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Bassman Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 You wouldn't call it a "Treble Bass"! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stewartmusic Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 [quote name='Bilbo' post='1146226' date='Mar 1 2011, 06:48 PM']Because it doubles the cellos in an orchestra an octave down.[/quote] But this is not always the case, if you mean doubling the celli as playing the same notes as them. Although in some earlier music in baroque or classical times when the bass would play the continuo it would most certainly double the celli but for more modern composers such as Mahler and Stravinsky the double bass was most certainly playing its own part. I have always seen it as called double bass because it plays an octave lower than actually written. Theoretically beside every double bass part there should be a small 8 underneath the bass clef to indicate this but i guess it is just became common practice to leave it out as it really probably just confused people... That is just the way I have taken to understanding it. Dara Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRev Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 I thought it was because the scale length is double that of a 'cello. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
27 frets Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 Hi According to Wikipedia, citing: A Brief History of the Double Bass, Lawrence Hurst, Professor of Double Bass, School of Music, Indiana University "The names contrabass and double bass refer the instrument's range and use in the contra octave below the cello, also called the 16' octave relative to the church organ." That was my understanding too - it's all about the pitch/range. The same applies with wind instruments, with the contrabasson/double bassoon sounding octave lower than a bassoon, due to double length of tube (though it's curled up) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted March 2, 2011 Share Posted March 2, 2011 [quote name='stewartmusic' post='1146743' date='Mar 2 2011, 08:43 AM']But this is not always the case, if you mean doubling the celli as playing the same notes as them. Although [b]in some earlier music in baroque or classical times when the bass would play the continuo it would most certainly double the celli [/b]but for more modern composers such as Mahler and Stravinsky the double bass was most certainly playing its own part.[/quote] I know it is not the case in later music but early on, when it was christened the double bass, it did Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fonzoooroo Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 [quote name='Blademan_98' post='1146352' date='Mar 1 2011, 08:21 PM']Does that mean an electric bass is more akin to a cello? (Serious question) Cheers.[/quote] They're same pitch as double bass. Bottom string on a cello is C wchih is C on the A string of a bass. (double bass or bass guitar) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbo Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 [quote name='fonzoooroo' post='1161502' date='Mar 14 2011, 10:35 AM']They're same pitch as double bass. Bottom string on a cello is C wchih is C on the A string of a bass. (double bass or bass guitar)[/quote] And you can get an extension thingy for a double bass that takes it down to C an octave lower. [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File%3a%44ouble_bass_C_extension.jpg"]C Extension - picture[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fonzoooroo Posted March 14, 2011 Share Posted March 14, 2011 [quote name='Bilbo' post='1161509' date='Mar 14 2011, 10:44 AM']And you can get an extension thingy for a double bass that takes it down to C and octave lower. [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File%3a%44ouble_bass_C_extension.jpg"]C Extension - picture[/url][/quote] indeed you can. I think we've all skirted round the big fact here... The cello is a member of the violin family. (period in history, shape of upper bouts and tuning in 5ths) The double bass is effectively still a viol which stayed in use in a standardised (much more recently) version of its original form. (presumably due to ease of playing - imagine the stretch required in the left hand if it were tuned in 5ths!) A bass viol is cello sized, (give or take) - certainly cello pitch. Hence double bass sounds an octave lower than a bass viol. To get an octave lower than that just gets silly... [url="http://wn.com/octobass"]http://wn.com/octobass[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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